The art of removing cores from peppers has provided a variety of systems which generally require significant human intervention and/or require highly sophisticated apparatus which may not be suitable for lots of peppers which have irregular shapes and/or wide variations in size.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,683,477, E. Altman describes an apparatus for coring pimento peppers. The device includes tubular coring knives which are moved into contact with individually positioned peppers and rotated to cut out the core. And, also in U.S. Pat. No. 2,688,993, White describes a coring apparatus which also utilizes a rotatable coring tube and requires manual placement of pimento peppers in a holding cup. Also requiring manual seating of a pimento pepper and the use of a rotating cutting unit, is the apparatus of Rigney in U.S. Pat. No. 2,835,294. Again, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,434,517, Durand, et al. require manual placement of pimento peppers into cup-shaped holders. This is also required by J. E. Altman in U.S. Pat. No. 3,563,289.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,252,056, J. E. Altman describes a fruit coring apparatus wherein fruit are supported in cups carried by a conveyor with transverse slats. The conveyor indexes a row of fruit beneath a coring station having two vertically reciprocating carriages. One carriage supports a row of coring knives rotated by a common motor and aligned with the fruit-holding cups. The second carriage supports ejector rods which extend axially through each coring tube. In an example, the coring tubes are articulated to grasp the core of the fruit when the coring knife is removed. The apparatus cores fruit including bell peppers.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,337,693, Dandria describes a pepper coring and slicing apparatus which includes a conveyor with parallel upstanding plates between which a pepper is clamped with its stem uppermost and the pepper axis vertical. A coring tube is moved downwardly through the pepper and includes a stripper which causes the core to remain within the pepper. A lower slicing knife is raised through the conveyor to make a partial diametrical cut. Two upper knives are lowered through the pepper and lie coplanar with the lower knife so as to complete the diametrical cut. At a discharge station, the conveyor clamping plates separate to release the pepper. The apparatus removes the core from a pepper and makes a diametrical cut through the remaining flesh.
In Soviet Union Patent Publication 1,331,478, there is disclosed a machine for cutting cores out of fruits. The apparatus includes a feed unit, an orienting mechanism, a chain conveyor with guides supporting cup-like fruit holders, and tubular coring knives which rotate in a wheel supporting one end of the conveyor. Once properly positioned in the holders, tubular knives having rotary/reciprocatory motion, and ejectors remove the core or heart of fruits such as peppers.
In Soviet Union Patent Publication 540,622, an apparatus is disclosed which holds peppers stationary for removal of the cores while in holders fastened to a conveyor. The holders are made from plates with holes, adjoining each of which are two parallel guiding troughs. These are established with a gap between them so that they form channels. The fruit can be discharged by fastening the holders to the conveyors by means of supports. In the gaps between the troughs, ejectors with rollers on their ends are located, so that they are free to move. The supports have grooves to accommodate the rollers.
In Soviet Union Patent Publication 367,845, a pepper coring unit is described which comprises a housing with the hollow cylinder including cutting blades that are both rotated and reciprocated. The cylinder carries a ring with a whip which is reciprocated along the cylinder and with the whip inserted into the pepper fruit. Elimination of whip deflection during the insertion into the fruit is ensured by placing it in a tube, which is cut off on one side and attached to the housing.
In Soviet Union Patent Publication 344,836, a pepper corer is described with a reciprocating and rotating cutting cylinder. The cylinder is enclosed in a fixed conical casing narrowed at the bottom. The cylinder is divided into separate sprung sectors, in the top of each of which is a frame with freely-mounted ball, interacting with the body as the cylinder reciprocates. The cutting blades are on two diametrically-opposed sectors, at the bottom. This provides for dealing with peppers of various sizes. Rubber limiters may be fitted to limit the depth of cut. An annular groove may be made at the top of the sectors.
In WO 93/13678, there is disclosed a process for preparing roasted, peeled peppers which entails disinfecting and rinsing peppers, separating fruitstalks and the seeds, baking, and separating the peel from the pulp. By operating in this sequence, the step of removing the core cannot be done without disinfecting, and the step of removing the skin becomes more complicated.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,252,056, J. E. Altman describes a fruit coring apparatus wherein fruit are supported in cups carried by a conveyor with transverse slats. The conveyor indexes a row of fruit beneath a coring station having two vertically reciprocating carriages. One carriage supports a row of coring knives rotated by a common motor and aligned with the fruit-holding cups. The second carriage supports ejector rods which extend axially through each coring tube. In an example, the coring tubes are articulated to grasp the core of the fruit when the coring knife is removed. The apparatus cores fruit including bell peppers.
Despite the development of a wide variety of pepper coring devices developed over the years, investigations of commercial equipment revealed that there was no suitable apparatus or method available that would facilitate core removal at high rates with a minimum of labor, consistent with the highly seasonal nature of the pepper packing business.